Create-A-Monster
Introduction I am fully aware of the fact, that there are other guides on how to create a Monster High Fan Character (FC). I do not want to say that they are bad or that mine is better, I just want to give a different approach on that topic. Monster Parents The best thing is to start with looking for a monster parent, e.g. what kind of monster your FC will be. That way it will be easier to create an appearance and it will also help with character building. Here is our internal list of species to help you find something interesting if you don't have an Idea yet. If you want to create a new FC based on a common monster of the universe, such as Vampires, Zombies, Werewolves/Werecats or Ghosts, it may not be very original, but it is totally fine IF you DO NOT make one of the following mistakes: DON'T copy from canon designs If your FC looks alot like a canon because it has only few alterations from it (e.g. hair color/length/style change, skin color change...) it's just a carbon copy of the canon. Just because your FC is a Mummy, it does not have to look like Cleo DeNile. It may also lead to copy&paste the canons profile with only few alterations. So don't do that. DON'T make siblings for canons This might also lead to a carbon copy of the canon you were trying to create a sibling for...plus it's really unoriginal. So better not create FCs related to canons at all. So, if you really want to create an FC based on a common monster, don't rely on canon characters as reference too much. This counts for both, the art design as well as for the character page. It is fine to compare, but it isn't fine to copy! However, there is another no-no for good FC creation: bad monster parent choices Monster High isn't the only franchise with monsters. However not every monster is considered a good monster parent. For example made up monsters such as Pokémon and Digimon are a really bad pick for monster parents. You should stick to folklore, mythology (and fairytales). The appearance however can be based on made up monsters: Did you know that many monsters out of other franchises actually have a mythological counterpart? For example Vulpix and Ninetales from Pokémon are based on the Kitsune. The Ragnarok Online Monster Miyabi Ningyo is based on the Futakuchi-Onna, Zoras and Ritos from the Zelda franchise resemble both greek and roman Sirens - just to name a few. Dig deep and try to find out the origin of the monster you consider to transform into a Monster High FC. One more tip here: generalize. Please don't make your ice themed monster daughter of Elsa from Frozen, just because you based the appearance off of her. „Son of Medusa“, „Daughter of Dracula“. Yes, Mattel does it as well but you will be better off to use more universal terms. Say „son of the Gorgons“ or „daugther of the Vampires“ instead, especially if the monster parent you wanted to choose is canon. If it is not be aware that this might be changing faster than you think, as the franchise is growing constantly. Also: do not forget the “monster” in monster parents. Humans, even if they are mean and evil or if they have special, non human powers, are no monsters. But we are creating exactly those! So, for instance, Cruella de Vil is NOT a monster parent. She also would be a very specific parent to pick. Same applies for Super Heros. They are a) way to specific to be a good monster parent and b) some of them can't even be considered "monster". Gray Area: Choosing an (Anti-)God as monster parent. Yes Mattel did it first with C. A. Cupid, then with Posea Reef. I personally think that you should be very careful with those. It's fine, but don't make them too powerful. They should have huge limits, even if it's 'just' the "God(dess) in training" thing that Mattel did with their godly descendants. Also make sure to give them VISIBLE monster features! Here is our internal list of deities.. Art Design This is a very abbreviated tutorial on how to create your characters art. I might be doing a full-blown tutorial on that topic as well, but for now, this must do. So, if you finally found a Monster to base your FC on, it is time for the design. Maybe you might as well think of a very dominant character trait first, so that you can “put” that into the design. For instance, if your FC is rather shy, then this trait can be pointed out by drawing their arms near to their body, maybe even holding on to themself in some way and let them look to the ground, rather than facing the viewer. If your FC is conceited you can draw attention to that by drawing their head up while the eyes are looking down. A bright, silly grin can make them appear sassy and if the arms are away from the body that could suggest the FC being friendly and open minded. These are just a few examples on how you can point out a dominant character trait only by the way you are presenting the FC. But if you don't have any idea about you FCs character yet, just start drawing. This tactic also works the other way around: you can think of a dominant character trait by looking at your final piece of art. Don't hesitate to search for and use bases as reference! Human anatomy is not that easy (even though Monster High is far from having a correct human anatomy, but I think you get the point) and you may look for references (so not only bases though, but they are the best to start with, as they don't "hide" anatomic details behind attire) on the internet, to get that specific pose right. However do NOT simply trace it. Copy it. It may be very hard the first few times, but trust me, if you get the hang of it, you eventually will be able to draw your own bases with less or even without any needs for references. Adding monster traits When you finished your base its time to 'make it monster'. Go to Google image search and type in your monster parent. If it's not something very unique and rare, you should find a load of pictures, where you can copy striking traits of the chosen monster such as horns, tails and wings. Add details like scales, fur, feathers, wood grain, joints...of course depending on your monster parent. You may also get rid of huge parts of the human in case your monster parent is half animal...like Satyrs, Centaurs, Mermaids or Nagas – to name a few. Again, don't hesitate to look for references for said creatures to get their anatomy right. Fashion Now it's time to dress up your FC. To be honest with you here, this, for me always is the hardest task concerning the art, as I am not really involved with fashion. However, keep in mind that a shy FC will most likely not run around in flashy 'look at me' outfits. But again: Google is your friend. Just google some nice outfits and put them on your FC. Depending on the pose this might get a little tricky though but if you use a new layer – that is a transparent piece of paper if you draw by hand – and try to figure out how the clothing works on the chosen pose. When you are done with that it is time for the coloration. Again look for some tutorials on the internet if you are having trouble with that. Coloration When you're done with the outlines your FC is finally done! Well almost. This is where color comes in. Finding suitable colors can be challenging. Here's the trick though. Every grapic program comes with an 'color picker' tool or whatever name the developer of the individual program has given to it. It always looks a little something like an eyedropper (I think Paint Tool Sai even calls it that). With that you can copy any color from any image you want. I personally use it alot but you can alternatively try to find fitting colors within the color circle of the program respectivly, If you don't want to look for images again. But be careful with the first option though. Just because your monster is ice-themed, you should avoid to only copy from Abbey Bominables color scheme or your FC will become a look alike. When you've applied your desired colors to the Linework, you can make the art more deep by adding highlights (e.g. light and shadow). This, however, is, again, a very tricky issue and will require some practice as well. Misplaced shadows look very odd; what a good thing that we can look at our reference for that again! -- Bio Page Now that you are done with the artwork, it is time to give the character's personality depth. This may be more difficult than you actually think but for me looking at my art helps me a lot to figure things out. That is why I start with the drawing part most of the time and that is why this tutorial is structured like that as well. You can and should also read wikipedia articles of the monster parent. Maybe you will find information that helps you to create a personality for your FC. For information and help with setting up your characters page on our wiki, follow [[Create Your OC's Page|'THIS']] link. Name I usually think about it while I'm drawing the FC so that most of the time, I figured out a nice name by the end of the coloration prFCess.What I ordinarily do is repeating the monster type over and over again in my head and try to think of a nice, creative pun that can be derived from it. Just like Draculaura is an alteration from Dracula and Frankie Stein comes from Frankenstein. Sometimes it doesn't work that well and the names you come up with sound odd. Then you can choose a name that you like and add a last name that hints towards the origin of your FC, such as Mattel did with RFChelle Goyle and Jane Boolittle, to name a few. Still nothing? Try a different language! Here I would recommend not just any language but that language of the country your mythological creature originally comes from. If your monster is already canon within the franchise you should also avoid using their last name, even though it is tempting. I know, in real life there's no such thing as a "unique" last name, but to avoid people thinking your Werewolf FC is related with the canon Wolf siblings, you better not take 'Wolf' as family name. Age I actually didn't intend to say something about age. And then I remembered that my FC Demian Devil was featured at fucknomgfanart , which is a site that criticize bad FCs and explain pretty detailed, why they are bad. One, admittedly small problem they had with him back then was his age. I claimed and still claim him to be 666 years old which is, according to them, too old for still being in high school. On this point I both agree and disagree. In my opinion it is okay to exaggerate, if the monster type allows it. I mean, Mattel does it as well: Draculaura is 1600 years old which translates into 16 in 'normie years'. As long as you do not do it all the time with every character, it's a nice gag. However it is better to go with conventionalised, 'normie' ages because yeah...even if 1600 Vampire years are translated into 16 human years, basically stating that Vampires age slower than others, it still means Draculaura is in school for centuries now, which, true, doesn't make any sense whatsoever, not even for a monster school. Since school systems differs from country to country (and sometimes even within the country itself, as it is in Germany), here is a table with the age and the respective grade you would be in if you are going to a High School in the US (where the Monster High is situated) Grade Age 09 (freshman) 14/15 10 (sophomores) 15/16 11 (juniors) 16/17 12 (seniors) 17/18 So stick to this age range IF you want your FC still to be a Monster High student. Note: There are two possible ages for each grade because it may depend on the day of birth of the character and whether it is before or after the school term starts. Monster Quirk/Freaky Flaw For me I always find it like the hardest to give the FC a fitting flaw/quirk. Mattel for instance loves to reverse the usual monster trait. Draculaura hating blood even though she's a vampire, Cleo DeNile being afraid of the dark even though mummies usually 'populate' dark places – pyramids - and sleep in sarcophagi, Lorna McNessie loving to photobomb even though she is the daughter of the Loch Ness monster and should, by mythology, rather avoid cameras, Ghoulia Yelpes who is rather smart for a zombie and so on. And if they do not reverse the trait, they like to exaggerate it, as we can see it with the character of Clawd Wolf and maybe even Heath Burns and/or Abbey Bominable. Some of these (reversed or exaggerated) traits make good monster quirks. However, here is an (uncomplete) list of freaky flaws/monster quirks from canons that might help you find a good one for your FC. As we can see by this excerpt, freaky flaws or monster quirks can be everything; from very universal character traits/fears to very specific drawbacks concerning their monster side, to things they simply can't do (like dancing). However, (mental or physical) disabilities aren't usually displayed as a flaw. Pet Peeve Something that your FC really can't stand. Easy enough? Well this can be sometimes challenging as well. To help you with that section, you can for example address the FCs flaw again. Or you could read through the wikipedia article of your monster parent and look for known weaknesses, or how humans tried to deal with/get rid of said monster in the myths. You can also think of stuff that you yourself rather dislike but it should fit to your character as well. Of course another good idea here would be too look at the pet peeves of the canons. Here I made another really short (because the official Monster High page is so messy and doesn't work like it should most of the time...) exceprt: As you can see, most of the pet peeves above are related to their monster traits: whether they are having a problem with it themselves or with others having a problem with it. Others are more personal issues, like Ghoulia's and Clawdeen's, and other pet peeves have something to do with the character's professional career, as we can see with Elissabat. Killer Style In this section, just explain/describe the cloth your FC is wearing in the art. Maybe you can figure out the name of the style, but if you are not that into fashion - like me - this also could be a hardish task to complete. Other Sections Favourite/Least Favorite everything. These sections are speaking for themselves. Just look at your FC design to find out a favorite color, look at the streingths and weaknesses of your monster to find out in which school subject he/she might do well in and in which not and so on. These part usually is the easiest. Monster Lingu Monster High is probably the most punny show there is. They morphed every possible word with, what I will call "Monster Lingu": The cafeteria becomes the "creeperia", if you take a "biteology" class that would be biology and if you are in for a nice basketball game, you might call it "casketball" instead. The Monster High wiki provides a list of canon terms that you could use but you are - of course - absolutely free to make punny words up as you go! What you shouldn't do, however, is trying to use a certain accent or dialect on your monster's bio just because they are supposed to speak that accent or dialect. This could make your monster's bio hard to read and understand and there is also a huge risk that you use said accent or dialect inappropriate.Category:Tutorial